Football News

Wildcats in the NFL – Week 17

Wildcats in the NFL – Week 17

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Each week throughout the 2015 NFL season, k-statesports.com has recapped the week for the 12 former Kansas State football players currently in the NFL. With the conclusion of the regular season on Sunday, seven of the 12 players are on rosters of playoff-bound teams as the NFL Wild Card Weekend will be held this Saturday and Sunday.

Arthur Brown, LB – Baltimore RavensA third-year linebacker for Baltimore, Brown played in the Ravens’ 24-16 loss at Cincinnati but did not record any statistics. A second-round selection in the 2013 NFL Draft, Brown has played in 32 career games and made 17 tackles. Baltimore finished the season with a 5-11 record.

Bryce Brown, RB – Seattle SeahawksBrown, a fourth-year player who has signed with Seattle three different times this season, rushed for 20 yards and a touchdown in the Seahawks’ 36-6 victory at Arizona on Sunday. In three games this year, Brown has 72 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries, improving his career totals to 1,076 yards and seven touchdowns on 252 carries. Seattle finished the regular season with a 10-6 record and will be the No. 6 seed in the NFC playoffs. The Seahawks will play at Minnesota during Wild Card Weekend on Saturday at 12:05 p.m. (CT) on NBC.Highlight:1-yd TD run

Randall Evans, DB – Philadelphia EaglesEvans, a 2015 sixth-round draft pick by Philadelphia who was on the Eagles’ practice squad the first 16 weeks of the season, was signed to the active roster on Saturday and played in Philadelphia’s 35-30 win at the New York Giants on Sunday. With the win, the Eagles finished the season at 7-9.

B.J. Finney, OL – Pittsburgh SteelersAn undrafted rookie free agent, Finney is on Pittsburgh’s practice squad. The Steelers won at Cleveland, 28-12, on Sunday to lock up the No. 6 seed in the AFC playoffs with a 10-6 record. Pittsburgh plays at Cincinnati in the Wild Card Weekend on Saturday at 7:15 p.m. (CT) on CBS.

Josh Freeman, QB – Indianapolis ColtsPlaying in his first NFL game since 2013, Freeman started at quarterback for Indianapolis, leading the Colts to a 30-24 win over Tennessee on Sunday. The former first-round draft pick threw for 149 yards and a touchdown on 15-of-28 aim, while he also rushed for 24 yards on eight carries. His touchdown pass was a 57-yard strike in the first quarter to give the Colts a 10-7 lead and represented Freeman’s first passing touchdown in 840 days. Despite the win, the Colts were eliminated from playoff contention on the final day of the regular season, finishing second in the AFC South with an 8-8 record.Highlight:57-yd TD pass

Emmanuel Lamur, LB – Cincinnati BengalsAn undrafted rookie free agent signee by Cincinnati in 2012, Lamur played in Cincinnati’s 24-16 home win over Baltimore but did not record any statistics. In three-plus years, Lamur has 150 tackles, a half sack, 10 passes defended and two interceptions. Cincinnati improved to 12-4 with the win and will be the No. 3 seed in the AFC playoffs. The Bengals host Pittsburgh during the Wild Card Weekend on Saturday night in a 7:15 p.m. (CT) game that will be televised by CBS.

Tyler Lockett, WR/Returner – Seattle SeahawksLockett, a third-round selection in this year’s draft who was named to the 2016 Pro Bowl, recorded 182 all-purpose yards – including a franchise-record 139 punt-return yards – in Seattle’s 36-6 win at Arizona on Sunday. The Tulsa, Oklahoma, native also recorded 36 receiving yards on two catches and seven yards on a pair of rushes. During the regular season, Lockett amassed 1,915 all-purpose yards to finish third in the NFL, which included 664 receiving yards and six touchdowns on 51 catches, 379 punt-return yards and a touchdown on 40 attempts and 852 kickoff-return yards and a touchdown on 33 attempts. One of just two rookies in NFL history with five-plus receiving touchdowns in addition to touchdowns via punt and kickoff returns (Gale Sayers, 1965), Lockett finished his initial NFL campaign ranked third in the league in total kickoff-return (852) and punt-return yards (379), while his six receiving touchdowns tied for the most this year by rookies. Seattle finished the regular season with a 10-6 record and will occupy the No. 6 seed in the NFC playoffs. The Seahawks will travel to NFC North Champion Minnesota during the Wild Card Weekend in a 12:05 p.m. (CT) game on Sunday on NBC.Highlights:Week 17 highlights

Cornelius Lucas, OL – Detroit LionsLucas, an undrafted rookie free agent signee last year, played in Detroit’s 24-20 win at Chicago in the season finale for both teams on Sunday. Lucas played in 15 games during the 2015 season, marking a second-straight season he played in 15 contests. The Lions, who started the season 1-7, went 6-2 down the stretch to finish 7-9.

Jordy Nelson, WR – Green Bay PackersNelson, a Pro Bowler in 2014, has spent the entire 2015 season on injured reserve after suffering an injury during the preseason. In his seven-year career, Nelson has totaled 400 receptions for 6,109 yards and 49 touchdowns, including 98 catches, 1,519 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2014. The Packers lost at home to Minnesota on Sunday night, 20-13, and will play in the NFC playoffs as the No. 5 seed. Green Bay will play in the Wild Card Weekend as it travels to Washington for a 3:40 p.m. (CT) game on Sunday, which will be televised by FOX.

Terence Newman, CB – Minnesota VikingsNewman, a 13-year veteran and first-year member of the Minnesota Vikings, carded six tackles in Minnesota’s 20-13 win at Green Bay on Sunday night, a game that clinched the NFC North division title for the Vikings. Newman, who has made 188 career starts in 190 games, has 803 career tackles, two sacks, 159 passes defended and 40 interceptions. The Vikings finished the regular season with an 11-5 record and will play as the No. 3 seed in the NFC playoffs. Minnesota hosts Seattle during the Wild Card Weekend on Sunday at 12:05 p.m. (CT) on NBC.

Darren Sproles, RB/Returner – Philadelphia EaglesOn the final day of the season, Sproles, an 11-year veteran, rushed for 24 yards and a touchdown on three carries and caught three passes for 20 yards in Philadelphia’s 35-30 win at the New York Giants on Sunday. Named to his second-straight Pro Bowl, Sproles now has 17,903 career all-purpose yards to rank 11th in NFL history while he remains second among active players. He will enter his 12th NFL season in 2016 just 265 all-purpose yards away from tying Herschel Walker for 10th all-time. He concluded the 2015 season atop the NFL with 446 punt-return yards and was the only player in the league with two punt-return touchdowns. The Eagles finished the regular season with a 7-9 record.Highlight:6-yd TD run

Justin Tuggle, LB – Houston TexansTuggle, an undrafted rookie free agent signee by Houston prior to the 2013 season, was inactive for the Texans’ 30-6 win over Jacksonville on Sunday. In his three-year career, Tuggle has made 71 tackles, two passes defended and one interception. With the win, Houston wrapped up the AFC South division title with 9-7 record and will host Kansas City in the Wild Card Weekend on Saturday at 3:35 p.m. (CT) on both ESPN and ABC.